1. Field of Invention
The invention relates to a printer and, more particularly, to an improved structure of a recording unit including a frame in which a print head performs recording onto a recording sheet.
2. Description of Related Art
A known printer is provided with a recording unit, which is made up of a print head, a carriage that carries thereon the print head, a guide mechanism that guides the carriage movably in a main scanning direction, and a carriage moving mechanism that moves the carriage in the main scanning direction. In most cases, a pair of side frames and a main frame, connecting the side frames, are assembled so as to form the shape of substantially an angular C letter, and a platen that supports a recording sheet being printed is disposed between the side frames. The main frame is provided with the carriage moving mechanism and one of the side frames is provided with a sheet conveying mechanism that feeds recording sheets to be printed and ejects them out of the printer.
In such a printer where, for example, a recording sheet is fed so as to pass under the print head within the frame and the print head prints downwardly onto the recording sheet, the top of the frame is an opening. When a paper jam occurs, a user has access to the paper jamming in the frame from the opening and can clear the paper jam.
In an ink-jet printer where ink cartridges for supplying ink to the print head are mounted on the carriage, the frame becomes high. Therefore, even when the frame is open-topped, rigidity and strength of the frame are sustainable. However, the height of the recording unit increases, so that it is difficult to shrink the height of the printer.
On the other hand, in an ink-jet printer where the ink cartridges are fixedly placed outside the recording unit and ink is supplied from the ink cartridges to the print head via ink tubes, the ink cartridges are not mounted on the carriage. Therefore, this is very advantageous in decreasing the height of the printer, however, the rigidity and strength of the frame are decreased as a matter of course.